Why SpiceJet Can’t Keep Up With Earnings Reports: An Explanation from India’s Struggling Airline

SpiceJet has a history of failing to file its financial reports on time. The airline has postponed its financial results announcement at least three times in recent times.

In 2022, SpiceJet delayed its Q4 FY22 results due to an IT attack that disrupted the audit process. As a result, they released their January-March 2022 and April-June 2022 results together in September 2022.

The following year, SpiceJet delayed the release of its January-March 2023 results due to the illness of a key audit committee member. They also delayed the release of their April-June 2024 results, eventually releasing both reports in August 2023.

SpiceJet’s last earnings report was for the July-September quarter of fiscal 2024, where it reported a narrower net loss of ₹449 crore, compared with ₹830 crore in the previous year. The airline on Tuesday told exchanges that it will release its Q3 and Q4 results on July 15, but did not explain the delay.

SEBI Regulations

Delaying financial reports has its consequences. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) requires listed companies to provide timely and relevant information to stock exchanges and investors.

SEBI regulations mandate that companies file their quarterly and annual financial results within 45 days of the end of each quarter. Failure to do so could result in penalties. In the past, SpiceJet has faced penalties for non-compliance, paying ₹5,900 for a one-day delay in Q4 2021, ₹59,000 for a 10-day delay in Q4 2022, ₹2,71,400 for a 93-day delay in its annual results for fiscal 2022 and ₹88,500 for a 16-day delay in its results for Q1 2022.

Current challenges

SpiceJet is grappling with legal issues over unpaid dues to aircraft leasing companies, vendors and suppliers, and is also under pressure from payment orders issued by the Delhi High Court and the National Company Law Tribunal.

The airline’s market share has declined sharply over the past five years, falling to 4% of the domestic market in May 2024, compared to 5.4% in May 2023 and 14.8% in May 2019.

“If a company does not announce its results on time, it will have a huge impact on investor sentiment. Good or bad, a company has to announce its results on time,” said Kranthi Bathini, equity strategist at WealthMills Securities Pvt Ltd.

Bathini noted that the aviation sector was doing well, with tourism growing and oil prices stable. He mentioned that the recent funding and Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) had generated positive sentiment towards SpiceJet.

Last changes

In December 2022, SpiceJet’s board approved the raising of ₹2,250 crore from 64 entities, including financial institutions, foreign investors, high-net-worth individuals and private investors through equity shares and warrants. In February 2024, the airline secured an additional ₹316 crore, taking the total raised to ₹1,060 crore through preferential issue.

Earlier this year, SpiceJet laid off about 1,500 employees, or about 15% of its workforce, after cutting its fleet by two-thirds due to lack of funds. The airline expects to save about ₹100 crore a year through these measures.

Elara Securities has estimated SpiceJet’s revenue at ₹1,876.8 crore and adjusted net profit at ₹275.1 crore for the last period. The company’s total income was ₹2,499 crore and consolidated net loss was ₹6.2 crore for the same period in the previous year.